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theweaselkingBBC Backstage provides a way for programmers to integrate BBC content into their web applications - the only caveat being that it must not be used commercially. Information is made available through APIs and include connections to news feeds, television and radio listings, travel information and weather data.
"I like to think of it as a public service for the 21st century," says project leader Ben Metcalfe. "It's an opportunity for people to connect with us and feedback into the creative process."
A handful of projects have so far been developed to demonstrate how Backstage can be used. These include a site that combines BBC traffic updates with an interactive map, to give drivers and rail travellers a visual picture of ongoing disruption. Another site built using Backstage APIs delivers BBC news headlines to mobile phones in the form of text alerts.
Web giants such as Google, Amazon and Yahoo already offer similar tools for programmers. Using the APIs released by these companies, web developers can, for example, integrate Google search results, Amazon book reviews or Yahoo listings into their programs.
"The strategy is a very clever one," says Ben Hammersley, a programmer and writer involved with Open Tech 2005. "On the surface it looks like a purely altruistic thing, but on the other hand, it's a very astute business strategy - every new application reliant on the Google API, or data from the BBC, further ties the company into the fundamental structure of the web."
"I like to think of it as a public service for the 21st century," says project leader Ben Metcalfe. "It's an opportunity for people to connect with us and feedback into the creative process."
A handful of projects have so far been developed to demonstrate how Backstage can be used. These include a site that combines BBC traffic updates with an interactive map, to give drivers and rail travellers a visual picture of ongoing disruption. Another site built using Backstage APIs delivers BBC news headlines to mobile phones in the form of text alerts.
Web giants such as Google, Amazon and Yahoo already offer similar tools for programmers. Using the APIs released by these companies, web developers can, for example, integrate Google search results, Amazon book reviews or Yahoo listings into their programs.
"The strategy is a very clever one," says Ben Hammersley, a programmer and writer involved with Open Tech 2005. "On the surface it looks like a purely altruistic thing, but on the other hand, it's a very astute business strategy - every new application reliant on the Google API, or data from the BBC, further ties the company into the fundamental structure of the web."